Getting Started as a women's basketball player

One of the hardest challenges we have faced is getting good courts for women to play on. Check out our Bay Area Teams and Leagues for places to play in San Fran, CA. Next are a good pair of shoes. See our article on how to pick out a good pair of shoes. High or low, tops that is, that is the question. They now make a wide range of mid sizes. too. Look for lots of stitching on the upper part of the shoe to support good side to side movement. This is one case in which you probably will have to shop in the men's department. We have found that Women's shoes are just not as good quality. If buying a men's shoe, make sure you ask yourself how high you want the mid sole, or heel. We have found that too much cushion, (a shoe made for a guy who needs to land from a dunk) places your heel higher off the ground. That can cause you to roll your ankle more easily. This article helps you in Choosing the Right Athletic Shoe for You.

The Basketball-Make sure to get a women's size basketball (28.5" circumference) Ask yourself if your ball will be used for indoor or outdoor play. Outdoor balls are more rubbery and have I have found that they are bouncier and have a strange, slippery grip. Leather balls are nice for indoor courts, but outdoor surfaces tend to chew them up. Make sure to get the women’s Size (28.5”). Our league likes the Spalding® TF-1000. I like my Wilson ® indoor/outdoor women’s ball. Spalding® has the Infusion self-pump (nice, but tends to be a little heavier).

Practice Gear-the style tends to be long and lightweight, not cotton. Get Mesh or dri-weave for your shorts and shirts, as you tend to run and sweat a lot. I highly recommend the “wick away” gear. Russell®, Nike® are the top two.

Helpful Women's Basketball Links: Basketball explained-history, rules, techniques, positions Basketball Hand Signals-visual aid of the referee arm motions Basketball Rules-Women's FIBA (International), WNBA, And NCAA Basketball Rule Differences Chicks with Balls-basketball info for women Connecticut Women's Basketball Hall of Fame Full court press-women's basketball journal, articles, info. Gball Mag-for girls who play basketball Hoops Gurlz-lots of info on the college game Hoop Heaven- The basketball Superstore Hoops King-links and info Illustrated college basketball rules Internatinal Basketball-women NCAA College Sports Rules, women's and men's basketball Santa Clara Broncos-Women's basketball Stanford Woman's Basketball (okay, we're regionally biased) USA Basketball-official site Virtual Library-Basketball Resourcecs Women's Basketball All Americans-history of women's basketball awards and all past winners. Women's Basketball Coaches Association Women's Basketball cup of Coffee-many links Women's Basketball Hall of Fame-including news about women's basketball Women's Basketball Magazine Women's Basketball Server-WNBA, College info Women's College Basketball-There, we're not biased. Women's College Basketball Championship History Site- This site tracks the history of the women's college basketball national championships year by year. Women's Hoops Blog- great women's basketball blog. Women's National Basketball Association Yahoo Sports Women's College Basketball